Cruel Intentions
by scorpiusrose
Summary: Every year, Scorpius makes an impossible bet with his best friend. This year, with the arrival of the new transfer student from Beauxbatons, Golden Girl Rose Weasley, Scorpius will have to figure out a way to seduce her into his bed, despite his animosity with her cousins. Who will win, and who will lose? Let the games begin. (Based on the movie, 'Cruel Intentions')
1. Game On

**(A/N)** And I'm back, as promised after a semi-hiatus. Ever since I watched the movie, 'Cruel Intentions', nearly a year ago, I've been wanting to write this story. Of course, I've changed it to fit Scorose, and you'll see some significant differences between this story and the movie, which you'll hopefully enjoy.

Just some quick background info: Scorpius is the Slytherin Bad Boy, and Rose is the new transfer student from Beauxbatons. The story is set in their 7th year.

 **Disclaimer:** I don't own HP nor Cruel Intentions

* * *

The blond wizard lounged back on the sofa of his common room. Green and silver drapes surrounded him in the cold chambers below the Great Lake, with emerald lights glowing eerily in the background.

"Scorpius," a voice purred in the dark. It was past midnight, and tomorrow marked their first day of classes. All of the occupants of the house have gone to bed, except for him and the raven-haired girl standing before him.

"Katerina," he greeted, patting the seat beside him, "To what may I owe the pleasure," he smirked, knowing she was looking for trouble… or fun, or a little bit of both.

Katerina Rosier was a family friend of the Malfoys, someone he had known since his time before Hogwarts. Together, they've grown up to be quite the cunning and ambitious duo, the perfect embodiment of their house. Alongside her long, curly black hair, her lips were perfectly painted sinful red, and the way her makeup looked reminded him of her nickname, 'Kat'. They would've made quite the stunning pair, with their aristocratic upbringing and mannerism, but Scorpius was too busy chasing skirts, whilst Kat was always changing her flavour of the week.

"Tomorrow's the start of our seventh year," she began.

"Tell me something I don't know," he drawled, glancing at his nails nonchalantly, "Why're you here?"

"It's been a long while since we played a game," her eyes twinkling with mirth, "Did you hear about our newest Hogwarts resident?"

"I have a feeling you're just bursting to tell me, so why don't you quit the interrogation and cut to the chase" he replied swiftly. He knew exactly what kind of game she was talking about. Every year, he and Katerina would come up with an impossible bet for each other to complete within a specific time period. Neither players have ever succeeded in winning the game, but this was their final year, and it was all or nothing.

"Hogwarts rumour mill is churning wild tonight. My sources are telling me that the Golden Girl has finally decided to grace us with her Holy presence"

"What girl?" Scorpius enquired.

"Rose Weasley, Ron and Hermione Weasley's only daughter, has decided to spend her last year at Hogwarts," Kat explained, flipping her hair to the side, "Apparently, her Muggle grandfather is sick, and Beauxbatons is simply too far for Your Highness to visit him during the weekends and holidays"

"I don't recall being allowed to visit my grandfather during the weekends when he was dying, not that I wanted to," he muttered.

"Well, that's the difference between you and her. She's a Weasley, she could get away with anything. Anyway, Al Potter is already giving out warnings to the boys to stay away from little Miss Rosie. It seems that Beauxbatons holds high standards of decorum, and she's not used to the… 'rowdy behaviour' from our lowly Hogwarts students," she raised her eyebrows to indicate her sarcasm.

"Sounds like a proper prude," he chuckled. Whilst he was intrigued by the new girl's supposed innocence, he could already tell she would be uptight and prissy, a combination that irked him just by thinking about it.

"Well, that's where your challenge comes in," Kat put on an evil grin on her face.

"No… No way," Scorpius moved further away from her, startled, "There is no way I'm going to date that. She's a bloody Weasley, they hate me, she'll never fall for that"

"As much as I'm surprised at the fact that the majority of the Hogwarts female population would actually want to date you, your challenge is not to date her. All you have to do is sleep with her, that's all," she shrugged, mischief glimmering in her eyes.

When Scorpius didn't respond, she continued, "Think of the glory, think of the look on Al Potter's face and all those damn Weasleys when they find out that you're the one who took her innocence"

"As much as I would love to see Potter's reaction, why would I risk the wrath of the Potter-Weasley clan just for 'glory'?"

"I thought you might say that," Kat took out a photo from the pockets of her sleeping robes, "This might help you change your mind, I nicked this off James' wall the last time I was in his room." It was no secret that since their bet last year, she and James were friends with benefits, despite despising each other immensely in the presence of the public.

The moving photo was one of James Potter with his arms around the shoulder of a beautiful red hair girl. The splatter of freckles across her cheeks made her rather adorable, her smile was bright and cheerful, and the muggle clothes she donned accentuated her figure underneath. Her light presence was exactly the opposite of Scorpius' character, he would never admit it, but at that very moment, he was completely mesmerised by the sight of her.

"She's… interesting. Fine… I'll do it, given that you complete the same task that you failed last year," he smirked, bringing up the dare that he had made for her in sixth year to seduce both the Potter brothers. She had only succeeded in bringing the elder one to his knees, "And plus, this will be my revenge after Albus Potter used his dirty tricks on us in Quidditch last year"

Katerina rolled her eyes, of course he would blame it all on Quidditch. Despite knowing that the Gryffindors won fair and square, she wasn't bothered to correct her best friend.

"And the stakes will be the same as before. If you win, I'll give you the keys to the lake house to use whenever you want to impress your… lady friends…," she rolled her eyes again, knowing that the Rosier Lake House her father gave to her was the ultimate vacation home, "And if I win, I get your limited edition Firebolt"

He nodded in agreement, "That, and bragging rights," he added, still clutching the photo in his hands, something that she had not missed.

"Just remember, Scorp," she stood up, "Don't fall for her"

"Trust me, Katerina, I wouldn't worry about me," he said confidently.

"Well then… Game on, Malfoy"

* * *

 **(A/N)** Did you like it? Hate it? Please leave a review as it would really help me out and motivate me to overcome my commitment phobia when it comes to fanfiction.

So it's clear that Sebastian in the movie is Scorpius, Annette is Rose, Kathryn is Katerina, and I decided to cut out some side characters like Cecile because tbh I found her quite boring and she served no purpose to main plot.

And what did you think of Kat and Scorp's relationship, and their bet? I prefer to write them as devious best friends rather than step-siblings with UST like they were in the movies. And do you think they'll win the bet?

Let the games begin.


	2. Don't Thank Me Yet

**(A/N) Sorry I haven't been able to update recently, as my grandfather passed away a week ago and I'm still trying to come to terms with it.**

 **I do hope that you enjoy this chapter, regardless, it took me a while to write. It will be centred around Rose and you might just see a little Scorose interaction at the end.**

* * *

Rose walked down the unfamiliar halls of Hogwarts on her way back from her own private sorting ceremony. She had arrived at Hogwarts a day later than everyone else as her brother had wounded up in the hospital for food poisoning.

 _She hoped she would be sorted in Gryffindor, where most of her cousins were. Of the ones still present, Al, Lily, Roxie and Louis were in Gryffindor, Lucy in Hufflepuff and Molly in Ravenclaw._

 _It was a shame that her brother wasn't with her, he had decided to stay at Beauxbatons and threw a fit when their parents suggested they transferred. Of course, he had a ton of friends and a girlfriend there, making his move all the more difficult. But for Rose? Not so much._

 _Ron and Hermione Weasley had thought it was best to send their children to Beauxbatons to avoid the media frenzy surrounding their family. It was a prestigious school where everybody was somebody, and being the children of war heroes wasn't such a big deal over there. The school was strict, much stricter than Hogwarts, as she heard from her cousins during the holidays, and she was always surprised at the kind of trouble they would get into. With Madame Ancelet's watchful supervision, the students at Beauxbatons followed rules like they were Holy._

 _The Sorting Hat was placed upon her head, as Professor McGonagall stood beside her._

" _Ahhh, another Weasley, I see. How peculiar, you're not a first year like the others, are you? What a peculiar case," it spoke, "I sense that you would be great in Ravenclaw, with your wit and pursuit of knowledge. But you do have your parents' sense of bravery… what shall it be, I wonder"_

 _Please be Gryffindor, she thought to herself, please be Gryffindor._

" _Well, young lady, Gryffindor it is!" The Sorting Hat proclaimed._

" _Welcome to Gryffindor," McGonagall smiled, glad to see that Rose had entered the house where she once belonged to._

" _Thank you Professor, I look forward to being a part of the house," Rose breathed out a sigh of relief._

" _I'm sure your cousins are waiting for you at Great Hall for dinner, you may go"_

Rose gave a genuine smile, as she approached the grand doors of the Great Hall, as she was excited to embark on this journey at Hogwarts, something that she felt she had always missed from the adventures her cousins had told her _._

She saw a collective turn of heads as she opened the doors of the Great Hall. It seemed that Dinner had begun for a while and she was clearly out of place with her lack of robes and tie, given that she had just been sorted.

The crowd turned away from her and began whispering loudly. She had never thought of herself as a topic worthy of discussion as most of her peers at Beauxbatons treated her like she was just another person.

Albus was the first to stand up, followed by the rest of her family as they greeted her at the entrance.

"Well?" Al asked.

"Gryffindor!" She exclaimed, as they took turns to congratulate her.

"Come, let's go for dinner and I'll tell you all about Hogwarts," Al said, "After all, it is my duty as Head Boy to give you a tour"

Everyone else groaned and rolled their eyes, "If you would stop bragging for just one second," Louis teased.

The Weasley clan headed off to their respective tables, and as she approached the Gryffindor table, the whispers got louder and louder.

" _Merlin! Is that Rose Weasley?"_

" _I heard she transferred from Beauxbatons"_

" _She's pretty, I wonder if she's dating anyone"_

" _I heard Beauxbatons students have a stick up their bum"_

" _I bet she's in Gryffindor"_

" _Think she'd be as easy as Lily Potter?"_

The voices soon became overwhelming, as they echoed in her head.

"Hey," she heard a soft voice beside her, "Don't pay them any attention," Al reached his hand out to squeeze hers, "Come, let me introduce you to some of my friends"

They walked over to the head of the long wooden table, "Hey guys," Al addressed the people in front of them, "This is my cousin, Rose, she's new here"

"We've heard all about you," one boy voiced out.

"Good things, I hope," she laughed nervously.

"Rose, these are my friends, Derrick Thomas, Sam Finnigan, Alexandria Maynard, and Sophia Richards. They're on the Quidditch team with me," the Gryffindors offered her a wave as they were introduced.

"So, how're you adjusting to Hogwarts so far?" Alexandria asked.

"It's lovely so far, I haven't really gotten around to exploring the school yet, but I'm looking forward to it," she replied her standard answer, not quite trusting these people enough to open up about just how nervous she was.

"Hogwarts is awesome," Sophia chimed in, "I hear Beauxbatons is a real you-know-what on rules. I bet the people there were boring," she laughed.

Rose looked at them, unsure of what to say, she didn't want to bash her old school because truth-be-told, she loved Beauxbatons and everything it stood for.

"Soph, don't be rude," Louis interjected, "Judging by what my sister tells me, Dom had a real blast there"

"Ah yes, Dominique Weasley, how is she, mate?" Derrick asked, with a smirk, "I miss seeing her in magazines"

"Shut up, and go flirt with girls in your own league," Louis muttered.

"But really, though," Sophia carried on, "Hogwarts is the best, as long as you stick with the right crowd"

Truth be told, Rose was already slightly annoyed at the way Sophia spoke. It reminded her of some of the girls at Beauxbatons with a superior complex, and would segregate themselves from those they thought were 'lowly'.

Rose's silence did not seem to deter Sophia, however, as she went on, "Trust me, though. You should stick to us Gryffindors, and maybe a couple of Ravenclaws and Hufflepuffs. But those Slytherins? They're bad news"

"I thought House Rivalries were over by now," Rose recalled her parents and uncles explaining to her cousins that they should not judge a person by their House, and that they hoped the final Wizarding War had ended all house prejudice. But clearly, they were too idealistic, as it seems that the problem still exists.

"Oh please, the Slytherins are nothing but trouble. Take the leader of their pack for example, Scorpius Malfoy, he's the worst of the bunch. You can ask anyone," Rose's eyes scanned over to the other occupants of the table and none seemed to be protesting, "And his friend, or girlfriend, or whatever she is to him, she's a real bitch. She tried to get it on with Al and James at the same time last year. Failed miserably, though," Sophia smirked.

"Umm… thanks for the advice, I guess. I'll take that into consideration," Rose mumbled.

"It's only because Soph is jealous," Derrick teased, "She's got a thing for James"

When dinner was over, she waved off her cousins as she wanted some alone time to think before she started her classes the next day, a tradition that she has had since her first year at Beauxbatons. Tired, they gave her the password to the common room and brief directions towards it, with a haphazardly drawn map and agreed to leave her alone.

She walked aimlessly in the hallways of the castle, it was truly a maze in here, and so different to Beauxbatons. There, the hallways were delicately decorated and labelled with colour schemes and directions. Here, it was more of a jumbled mess - homely, but messy nonetheless.

The further she walked, the less familiar the settings became, and soon she found herself wondering near what was labelled the Potions classroom. She looked at her watch, she had five minutes until curfew, there was no way she was going to get back on time.

The hairs on the back of her neck stood straight as she felt a light breeze in the dark hallways. She held her cardigan closer to herself, as she wished she had her school robes with her. She prayed she did not run into the Slytherin ghost, The Bloody Baron, as she had read from textbooks, he seemed bloody scary.

Footsteps approached her from behind and her first instinct was to hide. She stood behind a tapestry at the end of the corridor and held her breath.

"You know," a male voice drawled out, "I can see your feet from here"

Blushing immensely at the thought of being caught, she stepped out of the shadows and came face-to-face with a handsome blond wizard wearing Slytherin robes.

"I- er…," she stuttered awkwardly.

"What's the matter? Cat got your tongue?" He smirked.

"I'm Rose," she uttered, stepping forward into the light illuminated by the torches on the wall.

"I know," he replied simply, "You're Rose Weasley. Allow me to introduce myself, I'm Scorpius"

"Malfoy," the connection clicked in her head as she recalled the mention of his name over dinner just a few hours prior.

He frowned with a certain darkness in his eyes, "Not that it's any of your concern, Princess, but Scorpius is just fine"

"I prefer not," she held up her walls, she wasn't going to fall for his strong jawline or stormy eyes.

"Fine, suit yourself," he turned to walk away, with malice in his eyes, placing his hands in his pockets.

Rose looked around, trying to see if there were any other students in the seemingly abandoned hallways, but only darkness stared back at her.

"Wait," she jumped, as her own echoes caught her by surprise, "Wait, I'm sorry Scorpius," she ran forward to catch up with him and caught him by the arm.

He halted, his gaze shifting to her hand that was touching his forearm. He stood and waited for her to speak.

"Look, I'm sorry, I was being nasty for no reason," she said quietly, "Of all the students here at Hogwarts, I should've known better than to use someone's last name against them. I'm over the ancient family feuds, I really am. Can we start again?"

Scorpius considered her proposal. Being friends with her would certainly ease his bet with Katerina, but looking into her bright blue eyes, he knew that the bet wasn't even a reason for wanting to be close to her.

"Scorpius," he held out his hand as a renewed introduction.

"Nice to meet you, Scorpius, I'm Rose," she took his hand to shake it, trying to ignore the butterflies in her stomach. _He may seem like a good person_ , she thought to herself, but _he's still bad news_.

"Now Rose, how about I take you back to your common room then?"

"What? Umm… no, that's fine," she turned red, as he clearly noticed her inability to navigate the castle.

"Your lost puppy eyes tells me it's far from fine," he chuckled lightly at her expense, "Something tells me you have no idea where your common room is"

She smacked him lightly on the shoulder, "Don't tease, I'm new here"

"I know, so let me be the knight in shining armour for once and take you back to your lions' den," he hoped she would agree, not wanting to make a fool out of himself. Normally, he wouldn't even take the girls he had been seeing back to their common rooms, but there was something about her that made him fiercely protective. Hogwarts may be impenetrable, but it surely wasn't as safe as people thought it was.

She smiled, "I would really appreciate that, Scorpius, thank you," maybe he wasn't as bad as everyone made him out to be.

"Don't thank me yet," he said vaguely, knowing that if she found out about his bet with Katerina, she would be singing a much different song.

* * *

 **(A/N)** Tada, that's the end of Chapter 2, what did you guys think of Scorpius and Rose meeting?

As always, **please review** as it would motivate me greatly!


	3. Dive In

**(A/N)** Thank you so much for the continued support for this story, it blows my mind to see all the positive responses. Also, it would mean a lot to me if you would also check out my newest 'Lost in Translation', which is a story based on the song All Too Well by Taylor Swift.

 **To ChanceToBeImmortal** : Scorpius and Katerina are friends who have known each other since they were really young. They like to torment each other, but secretly really cares for one another, kind of like siblings. I changed the sex bet from the movie so that they have a platonic relationship, and there's no underlying sexual frustration on either parts. They may seem flirty at times, but that's part of their personality.

* * *

She looked up and caught his gaze, immediately feeling that traitorous blush rise to her cheeks. It was almost as though she had an incessant need to seek him out whenever they were in a room together and almost every time she looked over at him, she would catch him looking back too. It was as though he had contracted the same compulsion, or whatever this must be.

Before she had the chance to hide her embarrassment, he winked and gave a signature smirk, before strutting out the Potions Classroom, with his bag swaying behind him.

"Earth to Rose," she heard Louis speak beside her. It was only then that she realised her books were still opened on the table, whilst most of the class had already left.

In all her life, she's never known what it's like to be so distracted by a person's presence, but she couldn't help but embrace it. It was thrilling, and almost tantalising the way they played this little secret game of theirs. She was treading on dangerous waters, but she was loving every second of it. It had her heart racing just thinking about it.

Ever since that night, a week ago, when he took her back to her common room, he had completely altered her impression of him. Despite what Sophia had said, he didn't seem all that terrible and evil as she made him out to be. Sure, he had a bad boy vibe, but wasn't that just part of the appeal?

 _Bad thoughts, Rose_ , she scolded herself, _bad thoughts, there is certainly no appeal whatsoever._

She sighed at her own internal conflict and wordlessly, she packed up her belongings and followed her cousin back to their common room.

* * *

"Something's bothering you," Albus pointed out as he spotted his cousin, Louis, uncharacteristically pensive on the sofa at the corner of the common room that they have now deemed as theirs. Being head boy, he has his own quarters, but still preferred to join his friends back in the Gryffindor tower, "Where's Rose?"

His protective cousin instincts started to kick in as he noticed her absence. Perhaps some may say he was being too overprotective, but he knew that Rose was not used to being in the limelight, unlike himself, his siblings and his other cousins. She was innocent and somewhat naive, having grown up being treated like a "normal" person. It seemed that she was the only one who hasn't been messed up by the fame and debauchery that comes with their family name, and he wanted to preserve that. He owed his family that much.

His thoughts drifted to his own sister, Lily. He was unable to protect her from all that. Despite being two years younger, she has already made quite a name for herself. Lily, the girl who was much too friendly with older boys. Lily, the girl you would always find at the back of a party surrounded by alcohol and drugs. Lily, the girl who used to be the perfect daughter of the Chosen One, but fell so far from grace. But truthfully, he shouldn't be one to judge because he was just as fucked up inside as she was.

Everyone wants to be famous, until they find out the price it entailed. One by one, he watched his cousins spiral further and further away from the perfect image they were expected to uphold, and there was nothing he could do to save them.

He may have been the Saviour's son, but he was no saviour himself.

And this, this was Hogwarts, and he knew just how much the inhabitants of this school liked to gossip about his family, all the while waiting for them to screw up so they could gossip some more.

"She's in the library, I think," Louis replied after a long pause, "Or maybe the Quidditch Pitch"

"Why would she be in the Quidditch Pitch?" Al questioned. He knew that Rose didn't play Quidditch, nor was she ever a huge fan of the sport. Besides, it was Saturday morning, and most students would be sleeping in.

"She claims to concentrate on her work better outdoors and apparently, it reminds her of Beauxbatons," Louis said.

"You say that like you're skeptical," Al probed, sensing the way Louis was phrasing his words.

"I don't know… something just doesn't add up"

"What do you mean?" Al asked, slightly panicked. Had he been so absorbed in his head boy duties that he had neglected his responsibility as a cousin?

"I've checked the Quidditch schedules," he replied tonelessly, "She's only there when the Slytherins have practice"

"What?" Al jumped up from his seat on the sofa, "Are you sure about this?"

"He's right, you know" another voice joined the conversation. They turned around to see Sophia walking towards them, "I overheard your conversation, and it seems like our sweet Rosie has been spotted hanging around Malfoy lately. Apparently they're 'just friends', but you know what the word 'friends' means to Malfoy."

"How long has this been going on?" Al asked, completely in shock.

"A week or two, not too long," Sophia estimated.

"A week or two with Malfoy is like an eternity in Hell. He's just going to use her," Al said, frustrated at himself and at the situation, "We need to do something," he paced back and forth, thinking of solutions.

"I think I might have something," She turned around to hide that tug on the corner of her lips as she broke into a cunning smile.

* * *

It was late September, and they've fallen into a strange, unspoken routine. It first started with him seeking her out in her sanctuary, the library.

 _She looked up as she felt the seat next to her being pulled out. She expected to see one of her many cousins, so imagine her surprise when she saw a not-so-familiar face plop down onto the seat._

" _What's a girl like you doing in the library on this fine Saturday," he began, placing what appeared to be his Quidditch broom on the table. It was clear that he had just returned from Quidditch practice, with residual water beads that he must've left behind from his shower._

 _The thought of that made her squirm in her seat ever so slightly._

" _Well, unlike you, this girl is catching up with her schoolwork," she countered, though her tone was light and lacked malice._

 _He responded by lifting up a heavy bag on the table, one that seemed to be overflowing with books and notes, "Don't judge a book by its cover, Rosie"_

 _She let his words sink in as she realised that he was exactly right, "I see that now," she replied, flustered that he had chosen to sit with her despite the almost empty library. She let her hair cover the side of her face, as she tried to concentrate on her Charms essay._

 _She felt his fingers brush her cheeks as he tucked the curtain of red hair behind her ears._

" _You should come next time," he suggested softly._

" _What?"_

" _To the pitch. You might find that you'd like it," she looked at him in disbelief, but could tell that he was being serious, "We practice every Saturday morning and Wednesday evening, you should come"_

 _She considered it for a moment or two. Should she? She knew her family and housemates would disapprove, but his invitation was undoubtedly tempting._

 _Don't judge a book by its cover, Rosie._

" _Okay," she said definitively, with a smile._

She looked down at the small piece of parchment, unfolded in her hands. It was wrinkled from the number of times she had folded and unfolded it, rereading the words over and over again. He had passed it to her on his way out from Potions that morning, and she's been thinking about it ever since.

 _ **7pm, statue on the fifth floor, I want to show you something - S**_

It was the first time he had done something like this. In fact, they had never met aside from the library and the pitch. Eager to see what he had to show her, she hurried up to the fifth floor, ignoring the looks she received from her cousins as she bumped into several of them in the corridors.

 _What they don't know won't kill them_ , she thought.

She doesn't think she's ever been in this part of the castle before, but then again, a majority of the corridors in this castle look virtually the same.

He was leaning against the side of the statue when she came into vision. Still catching her breath, he teased, "Eager to see me?"

"Oh shut up," her breaths were steadying, but her heart still pounding, clearly a side effect unrelated to the exercise she had just performed… clearly, "Call me curious"

"Seeing as we have to pack a seven-year experience into one, let's just say I'm going to bring you to see all the 'tourist spots'," he said, as he began to walk towards the end of the corridor.

"I would've never pinned you as the tour guide type," she looked behind them to see if anyone was following. There was something scandalous about this, despite the fact that they weren't doing anything wrong. Just two… acquaintances strolling in a perfectly empty corridor before curfew.

He stopped in front of a wooden door, with two golden words embossed on it.

 **Prefects' Bathroom**

Finding that her eyes have widened in surprise, he chuckled, "No funny business, I promise"

"Aside from the fact that I have no idea why we're here, are you sure we're even allowed to be?"

"Well I am, seeing as I'm prefect and all, and as for you…," he mumbled the password to open the door, "You're my guest"

"Somehow I don't think the school will see it this way," she said nervously. It didn't feel right to break the school rules. Perhaps it was her Beauxbatons upbringing, but rules were there for a reason.

"The thing about me, Rosie," he leans in close, almost too close, until his lips brushed the shell of her ear, "I don't care for rules"

He opened the door and stepped inside, revealing a massive pool-sized bath, with faucets made of gold.

"Come," he held out his hand, inviting her to take it, "Take a risk"

She was hesitant, the rational part of her protesting against this clear violation of rules, but the other part, an unfamiliar part of her, was awakening for the first time and it was telling her quite the opposite. The urge to step into that room was maddening. He was right, she had to take a risk. She _wanted_ to take a risk.

" _I dare you,"_ he whispered, his eyes burning into hers with such intensity.

She bit her lower lip and looked up to meet his gaze. Slowly, her hands rested upon his and she allowed herself to be led further into the room.

"No funny business," she repeated, but her voice quivered.

He laughs and she could feel herself physically relaxing and feeling at ease around him, despite still being confused as to what they were doing here.

"For such a huge castle, Hogwarts simply lacks entertainment. That's why we have to be a little creative, and whilst parties are fun, they all blur into one with the amount of alcohol they serve there. So this, here, is my entertainment… my version of a swimming pool"

"You use this as a swimming pool?" She had to applaud him for his creativity.

"Well yeah, look at the size of it. Granted, it's not as big as the one back home, but it certainly beats having to swim in the freezing lake during winter. Do you like to swim?"

"I wouldn't exactly call it swimming, more like floating," she said as he turned on the faucets to fill the tub.

"Don't worry," he looked at her sincerely, "I can teach you"

She smiled at him, marvelled by his kindness towards her, someone he barely knew but took a chance on. Someone he was supposed to hate, but for some reason, didn't.

He was making it very difficult not to fall for him.

"There's a swimsuit over there by the counter, you can get changed first," he pointed towards a pile of clothing.

They both went over and she inspected the pile, looking for something that would fit her and her style.

"They're new," he reassured, "Katerina buys more than she would ever use and I figured she's around the same size as you"

Tensing at the sound of her name, Rose suddenly remembered Sophia's mention of her, "You and Kat… you seem… close," she tried to sound as nonchalant as she could, brushing her loose tendrils behind her ears.

"We're just friends," he smirked, catching her underlying tone of dare he says, jealousy, "I've known her for years"

"Right…" unsure of what to say, she focused her attention onto the pile of swimsuits once more.

Most of them were bikinis or cut-out swimsuits, but she managed to find a light blue one-piece that was just her style. It wasn't too provocative, but it was cute and showed an appropriate amount of skin, with its low-cut back, thin straps and a conservative front.

She held it up against her body and heard Scorpius hum a tone of appreciation as he gave her a once-over.

"I'll try this on then," she said, after a pause.

He nodded, but gave no indication of turning away. Rose let out a small cough and cocked her eyebrows.

"Oh," he came out from his trance, "I'll er… look away," he took a pair of swimming trunks for himself and went to the other side of the room.

Once she was sure he had left to the other side, she turned to face the wall. Slowly, she began to peel off her robes, her shirt, her skirt, until she was down to her undergarment. It was one thing to be around him with their clothes on, but knowing that he was stripping down a few metres away with nothing between them was a situation she never thought she would be in.

Against her rational mind, she decided to peek behind her. _Just making sure he's not looking_ , she justifies with herself.

She gasps lightly, hoping to Merlin that Scorpius was too far away to hear, when she spotted his entire backside at view. His lean muscles rippled in his movement, showing off his athletic Quidditch physique and it took all her willpower to look away.

She scolded herself, whilst going back to her task at hand. She removed her bra and panties before slipping into the light blue swimsuit.

"I'm ready," she called out, keeping her tone calm.

"Yeah… me too," they both turned around and took their fill of one another. She could feel a change in the atmosphere, and the tension was scarily thick, as she could feel her mouth run dry.

"So, what do you say?" He challenged, "Dive in," and with that he jumped into the water, leaving her soaked and confused with her thoughts.

* * *

 **(A/N)** Love it, hate it? Let me know! This chapter is more to show you guys a change in their relationship, but next chapter - things get dramatic, cos if there's anything i love in this world, it's drama.

Leave a review as every time I get one, I'm motivated to write a bit more


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